Proposal To Merge Schools With Low Enrollment In Next Cabinet Meeting: Himachal Minister

Himachal Education Minister Rohit Thakur proposed merging schools with fewer than 20 and 25 students in the next cabinet meeting.

Himachal Pradesh has seen a decrease of 5.13 lakh students in government schools. (Representative Image)

Source : Freepik

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Education Minister Rohit Thakur announced on Tuesday that a proposal to merge high schools and secondary schools with fewer than 20 and 25 students, respectively, will be discussed in the next cabinet meeting. Thakur revealed that officials have been instructed to gather data on student numbers across senior secondary and high schools in the state, as reported by news agency PTI.

He pointed to an example from Senior Secondary School Hansa in Lahaul and Spiti district, where eight teachers are assigned to just two students, illustrating the imbalance in the student-teacher ratio.

The minister clarified that the new guidelines aim to merge or downgrade high schools with 20 or fewer students in classes 5 to 10, and senior secondary schools with 25 or fewer students in classes 6 to 12.

The move, Thakur emphasised, seeks to encourage healthy competition between government and private schools to improve the quality of education in the state.

Over the past two decades, Himachal Pradesh has seen a decrease of 5.13 lakh students in government schools. Thakur highlighted that school mergers are a nationwide trend, with 76,000 schools already merged across India. Previously, 1,100 primary and middle schools in Himachal Pradesh with low enrolment were merged as well.

CBSE Withdraws Affiliation Of 21 Schools, Downgrades 6

The Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) conducted surprise inspections across 27 schools in Rajasthan and Delhi. The inspections focused on ensuring compliance with CBSE's mandatory student attendance norms, as outlined in the Board's Affiliation and Examination Bye-Laws. The move aims to uphold educational standards by addressing the issue of "dummy" or non-attending admissions, which can hinder students' academic progress.

As a result of the inspections, Show Cause Notices were issued to several schools, granting them 30 days to respond and address the identified discrepancies. Following a thorough review of the responses, supported by video evidence, CBSE took strong actions, including:

• Withdrawal of Affiliation: 21 schools had their affiliations revoked due to a significant number of non-attending students in classes IX to XII.
• Downgrading of Schools: 6 schools were downgraded from Senior Secondary to Secondary level.

CBSE emphasised that these actions are part of its ongoing commitment to ensuring quality education and ethical practices in affiliated schools.